14 Friction Stir Welding
14.1 Process Description
14.1.1 Rotational Friction Stir Welding
Friction stir welding (FSW), developed by and pro-
prietary to TWI Ltd in the UK, is an advanced tech-
nique for joining materials in a continuous operation.
In conventional FSW, a cylindrical, shouldered tool
with a profiled probe is rotated and slowly plunged into
the joint line between two pieces of sheet or plate mate-
rial, which are butted together (Fig. 14.1). The parts are
clamped to prevent the abutting joint faces from being
forced apart during the welding process. Frictional heat
is generated between the wear resistant welding tool
and the materials to be joined. This heat causes the
latter to soften or melt, and allows traversing of the
tool along the joint line. The plasticized material is
transferred from the leading edge to the trailing edge of
the tool probe and is forged by the intimate contact
of the tool shoulder to produce a weld between the
two pieces. The process can be regarded as a keyhole
welding technique since a hole to accommodate the
probe is generated, then filled during the welding
sequence [1].
Sufficient downward
force to consolidate
the weld
Retreating side
of weld
Leading edge Advancing
of the shoulder side of weld
Trailing edge
of the shoulder
Probe
Figure 14.1. Principle of rotational friction stir welding
(Source: TWI Ltd).
Although very successful at welding metals, espe-
cially aluminum alloys, conventional rotational FSW
presents the following problems when welding plastics:
• Difficulty in retaining the material at the joint
line, resulting in voids in the welded joint
• Low speed of welding
• Difficulty in creating an even polymer mixing at
the joint line
• A nonuniform crown or weld bead
To solve these problems, Brigham Young Univer-
sity developed a hot shoe tool (Fig. 14.2) through which
the rotating probe passes. With this arrangement, heat
is not produced by frictional heating from the shoulder,
but by the hot shoe that also constrains ejection of mol-
ten material from the joint line [2, 3].
14.1.2 Vertical Reciprocating FSW
The principle of vertical reciprocating FSW is
shown in Fig. 14.3. It consists of a blade that recipro-
cates in the vertical direction. Frictional heat is gener-
ated between the blade and the plastic material. The
Mill spindle sleeve
clamp
Shoe stop
Thrust bearing Threaded tool
Resistive heater
Heated shoe
Figure 14.2. Heated shoe system for rotational FSW of
thermoplastics (Source: Ref. [2]).
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Figure 14.3. Vertical reciprocating FSW (Source: TWI Ltd).
main problem with this technique is that there is no
mechanism for retaining molten material in the joint,
which results in voids in the weld area and associated
low weld strength.
14.1.3 Viblade Welding
Another variant of FSW is the reciprocating motion
of a blade in the direction of the weld, as shown in
Fig. 14.4. This technique has the benefit that the blade
remains fully within the joint at all times, making it
easier to contain the melt in the weld. In addition, heat
losses are reduced, and the mean temperature should
be higher when compared with vertical reciprocating
motion [4].
A photograph of a Viblade weld is shown in
Fig. 14.5.
Downwards
force
Vibrating
Direction of
travel
Blade
Figure 14.4. Schematic illustration of Viblade welding
(Source: TWI Ltd).
JOINING PROCESSES
Figure 14.5. Viblade weld in 9 mm (0.35 inches) thick PP
sheet (Source: TWI Ltd).
14.2 Advantages and Disadvantages
The potential advantages of Viblade welding over
existing fabrication welding techniques, such as hot gas
and extrusion welding, include: increased productivity,
especially for thicker sections (>10 mm; >0.39 inches);
continuous welding possible; ability to weld almost all
thermoplastics; simple joint design; practically flash-
free welds; and the fact that it is an automated process,
resulting in improved QA and a reduction in weld
failure.
The limitations of the FSW process at present are
that it has only been proven for producing linear welds,
and it is not currently commercially available for join-
ing plastics.
14.3 Applications
The increased use of plastics in manufacturing and
fabrication has highlighted the need for new joining
techniques to be developed to improve productivity
and achieve more consistent welds with greater integ-
rity. The current techniques used for welding thick sec-
tion thermoplastic sheets for the manufacture of large
constructions, such as chemical storage vessels and
tanks, are extrusion, hot gas, and butt-fusion welding.
Both hot gas and extrusion welding rely on the skill
and consistency of the operator to ensure that a quality
weld is made. Automated FSW could potentially
replace these manual techniques for fabricating large
thermoplastic structures and vessels, whilst ensuring
that a weld of high quality is maintained. The FSW of
thermoplastics has not yet been commercially exploited;
however the FSW process could have a significant
impact for continuous welding of plastic sheet.
14: FRICTION STIR WELDING
14.4 Materials
FSW can be used for joining many types of materi-
als, if tool materials and designs can be found that allow
the material to melt and flow. Joint strengths of over
95% of parent strength have been obtained in the labo-
ratory for ABS, PP, and HDPE. Other materials suc-
cessfully welded include PVC and PVDF [2].
14.5 Equipment
14.5.1 Rotational FSW
Rotational FSW can be carried out on simple
machinery, such as a modified vertical milling machine.
The machine frame needs to be robust, avoiding any
significant deflection during welding. Ample power is
needed to ensure a steady rotation of the welding tool.
The parts to be welded should be manipulated by a lin-
ear or X–Y table. A hydraulic force system can also be
incorporated into the machine to provide the downward
welding load.
14.5.2 Vertical Reciprocating FSW
The principle of vertical reciprocating FSW is that
a specially profiled metallic tool (or probe) is moved
relative to the joint to generate heat by friction. The
tool can be either cylindrical in shape or an aerofoil-
shaped, blade-type probe. The tool is reciprocated with
predetermined amplitude before being traversed along
the length of abutting sheet materials.
A machine can be used that allows for the creation of
reciprocating stroke movement. This type of movement
is created by means of a Scotch-yoke mechanism.
The Scotch-yoke is a mechanism for converting the
linear motion of a slider into rotational motion or vice
versa. The piston or other reciprocating part is directly
coupled to a sliding yoke with a slot that engages a pin
on the rotating part.
This type of system, combined with a mechanism
for applying horizontal load and manipulating the
polymer parts or blade can be used for vertical recipro-
cating FSW.
14.5.3 Viblade Welding
Currently, a commercial linear vibration machine
is used for Viblade welding. The welding process con-
sists of a blade (made of titanium) and a shoulder (made
of PTFE) that run between the abutted thermoplastic
133
sheets, whilst a downward force is applied. The blade
and shoulder vibrate at a frequency of around 200 Hz
and with an amplitude of approximately 1.15–1.3 mm
(0.045–0.05 inches). The reciprocating blade generates
frictional heat, causing the sheet material at the inter-
face to melt and form a weld behind the blade.
14.6 Welding Parameters
There are a number of process and material vari-
ables for all the FSW techniques detailed in this section
which can affect the quality of FSW of thermoplastics.
These include:
• Tool design
• Tool rotation speed
• Tool temperature
• Travel speed
• Vertical load
• Horizontal load
• Plunge depth
• Tilt angle
• Welding gap
• Plate thickness variation
For Viblade welding, since thermoplastics have a
very low thermal conductivity, the heat produced by
the shoulder is not enough to melt the material near the
root of the joint. A blade that produces enough heat
input on the faces of the butt-joint is required. The fric-
tional heat is proportional to the pressure, so the down-
ward force directly acts on the heat input produced by
the shoulder, and indirectly on the heat produced by the
blade. The pressure between the blade and the faces of
the sheets is due to a horizontal load applied to the
sheets, and also the penetration of the blade between
them. The horizontal load can be applied to the abut-
ting sheets either pneumatically or mechanically. The
vertical load of the shoulder also helps to prevent the
gap between the sheets (caused by the advancing blade)
to expand. This results in a high pressure on the blade
faces and a frictional heat input enough to melt the
material through the full thickness.
References
1. Thomas WM, Nicholas ED, Needham JC, Murch
MG, Temple-Smith P, Dawes CJ: Friction welding.
United States Patent 5,460,317, October 1995.
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2. Sorensen CD, Nelson TW, Strand S, Johns C, Chris-
tensen J: Joining of thermoplastics with friction
stir welding. ANTEC 2001, Conference proceedings,
Society of Plastics Engineers, Dallas, May 2001.
3. Strand SR, Sorensen CD, Nelson TW: Effects of
friction stir welding on polymer microstructure.
JOINING PROCESSES
ANTEC 2003, Conference proceedings, Society
of Plastics Engineers, Nashville, May 2003.
4. Scialpi A, Troughton M, Andrews S, De Filippis
LAC: In-line reciprocating friction stir welding of
plastics. Joining Plastics—Fügen von Kunststoffen,
1, 2007.